Ruination
by Tales Account
Summary: The internal battle is the most rigorous and important in a war. But for Iris Ivory, it is also the most terrifying. •RWBY: Tales of Haven Oneshot• Happy Birthday, Guy•


**Ruination**

 **.x.X.x.**

 _~CrazyPlotQueen~_

"Watch out!"

Ariela Bluroan's voice echoed across the hollow field, but her warning was far too late to save anyone. The deed was already done, the attack was already made. Sapphire Breckinridge's lips were twisted in a sneer as she launched a volley of icicles at the inheritors, hoping to remove them from the battle. Winning this battle would mean to the world to Sapphire, quite literally; Shoggoth would destroy Remnant, destroy its inhabitants, and her mistress, Salem, would be able to recreate the world.

Salem's raw power and centuries of expertise scared Sapphire alone, but the thought of failing her terrified her to no end. She had to succeed here.

The shards of ice hurtled towards its target, Iris Ivory, and the girl's face turned deathly pale, her lips parted ever so slightly as if to scream out to the heavens, but no sound came forth.

Suddenly, Iris felt a sudden jolt as a girl tackled her mid air, slamming her into the ground. At first, the inheritor thought it was an attack, but realized that her teammate, Marron Rink had been the one to push her out of the way, and subsequently take the shard of ice.

A sharp yell cut through the air as they landed, and Iris looked up to see her friend's face contorted in agony. Then, she felt a trickle of blood on her wrist, and her eyes widened when she saw a large gash stretching down Marron's side.

"Shit. That hurt…" The pyro gasped, her eyes wide.

"No!" Iris cried frantically as the blood poured out faster now, she gently pulled the teen off her and settled her into her lap, tears streaming down her paled cheeks. "This can't be happening! This just can't! Marron... You... Marron!"

"Hey, don't cry. I-I don't want to see you cry," The brown haired girl murmured, hand shaking as she attempted to wipe the liquid that trailed down Iris' cheeks. Once Marron would touch her palm to her soft skin, the frail girl pressed her hand to her cheek in an attempt to keep her there, not wanting to let go.

"D-Don't let go. You have to hold on, Saul will be here soon and we'll get you help and…" Iris couldn't continue on, choking on a sob. Seeing Marron cough, flecks of blood on her lips as she shook violently, the girl scrubbed at her tears with one hand, continuing to hold her friend. "Don't close your eyes, okay? Just don't."

"Iris...You have to help them," Marron's pale red eyes flicked over to the group of inheritors who were struggling to manage Shoggoth and the other Grimm spawns. It was an uphill battle for them, considering they had never faced a beast of this size and magnitude, and so far the teens weren't able to keep up with his attacks.

"I-I...Oh god...Why do I have to choose?" Iris whimpered to herself as she searched around her for some source of solace. She found none as Marron's body shuddered again from another cough.

Marron chuckled weakly, "You don't. It should be a no brainer: them. The fate of the world is at stake here. Go to them, help them."

"Don't you fucking get it? There's no world for me without you in it!" Iris sobbed furiously, glaring at the girl in her lap. "Maybe it's selfish, but the world is ending and maybe I don't care!"

Marron's face softened when she heard the confession, and for a moment, there was nothing to be heard but the sounds of the battle and impending demise. "Y-You… mean that?" Her brows furrowed, and she completely forgot about the grievous wound in her side. Iris made her forget about a lot of things, usually stupid decisions, but this time she was making her forget about death even though it was right on her doorstep. "It's over Iris, you have to leave me here."

"S-Shut up!" Iris froze as she noticed Shoggoth making his way closer as the others were pushed back. It was definitely a suicide mission now, and it wasn't looking good for the Inheritors. Wrapping her arms around Marron, she channeled all her aura into her legs, hoping to somehow muster up the strength to carry her away to safety.

"Stop it! You'll hurt yourself, you'll hurt your heart!" Marron yelled, scowling at the other teen, making her give up the effort. Finally, seeing the distress and sadness etched in her face, she cupped Iris' face weakly, and pressed her lips to hers.

Iris let out a squeak, freezing up right there on the spot. It probably wasn't the best thing to do in an apocalyptic battle. Her mind went a million miles per hour, eyes wide as she tried to decipher the meaning of this. Did… Marron like her?

Finally, the other teen pulled away, her eyes fluttering slightly. "I've been wanting to do that forever," She coughed, but a small smile appeared. It was manifestation of Marron's happiness, one for Iris and only for her.

As happy as Iris was, she was dumbfounded.

Forever? She'd been wanting that for that long? Iris' heart swelled to the point where she thought it might stop for good, and her cheeks flushed pink. There was a longing inside of her to somehow stay in this moment forever.

That longing desire was interrupted by a sharp stabbing sensation in her chest, and a wave of agony. Eyes wide, Iris glanced down to find herself impaled by an icicle.

"How tragic," A cold voice chuckled dryly from behind her. Sapphire, the frail girl realized as she heart the person approaching. Glancing down at Marron, she noticed the other teen was unconscious and unmoving. No. Was she gone? Was it all over now?

Sapphire came into view, kicking Marron's limp body to the side.

"Don't touch her!" Iris shouted, all traces of stutter or fear gone when her friend was threatened.

"Oh, I don't want to touch her. There's no point, she's already dead. You however… one less Inheritor would make this all the easier," Sapphire gave her a cold grin, devoid of any emotion other than a desire for malice.

Iris took a rattle of a breath, summoning what she could of her power, willing her golden wings to manifest so she could slice Salem's servant to pieces.

But before her wings could fully form, Sapphire's flying claws wrapped around her, effectively restraining her as the third year stalked towards the downed girl.

"It's tragic, yes. But hey, at least you'll be with her soon enough," She flashed a vindictive smile as she pulled out a dagger from its hilt, forced Iris' head upwards violently, and slid the sharp blade across her throat.

Iris Ivory was rather happy that the last thing she saw was the bright blue sky instead of Marron, her dead friend. It was a beautiful last sight.

 **.x.X.x.**

 _Happy Birthday, Guy! I'm so happy I met you this year on the Forum. You're an awesome Mama, Roleplayer, and Writer ! I loved the RPs and plots we think up, and can't wait to hang out with you more on calls. Here's to another year._

 _~Plot Queen_


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